Green Living

UPDATE on the vitamins and supplements :)

daisygirl17 — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 19:17:04 GMT

my ND got back to me super fast after I emailed her (as I knew she would)...she was actually really glad that I'm questioning her...says she encourages me to question everything she recommends (man I love this whole going to a ND thing!)

anyway...here's the breakdown of what everything's for:

VITAMIN D: she understands my concern on the vitamin D and said she'd be fine with moving me down to 2000 iu/day if i'm really concerned. it isn't an all or nothing thing, so she said 2000 iu/day is fine if i want to start with that. but, she recommended it because 1. i live in the PNW with almost no sun in the winter and 2. it is an important immune modulator, that is it helps to even out inflammatory immune response like you see with asthma and allergies (that i have), while also helping to enhance the immune response during flu season. she's going to test my levels when i get blood drawn next week and then again in a couple of months.

FISH OR COD LIVER OIL: recommended because it is a good source of EPA which is an essential fatty acid that is a precursor to anti-inflammatory cellular communicators, meaning that enhancing that pathway helps to reduce inflammation in the body. Reducing inflammation can have a wide effect on the body including cardiovascular benefit, reduction of allergies, amelioration of arthritis or mechanical aches and pains and more and you may hear of fish oil being recommended for all of these complaints.

MAGNESIUM MOUTH SPRAY: magnesium is a mineral that is needed to relax muscles. calcium helps the muscles to contract and magnesium to relax. they are both important but magnesium deficiency is much more common. Part of the mechanism of asthma and migraines is contraction of muscles around your airways and blood vessels respectively. magnesium can also help to relax the muscles of the bowel and help to promote regular bowel movements (which i currently am not having) she said that at higher doses it can cause loose stool, but she didn't give me that high of a dose, however, if i have loose stool to let her know.

PROBIOTIC (to be used 3 weeks after i do the initial cleanse): Establishing proper flora in your gut is important to general health because if your gut isn't working properly we don't absorb our food properly leading to many nutritional deficiencies. Also, about 70% of the bodies immune system is found in the gut, so promoting a healthy GI will else promote a healthy immune system.

WHEW. i typed it out mostly word for word of what she said. i love that she talked to me without using tons of technical jargon so that i could understand what she was saying :)

I know that's a lot of info and maybe some of you won't care...but I just thought it'd be good in case anyone was truly interested, and thinking about seeking a naturopathic doctor! Let me know if you have any other questions :)

important fire hazard re: unpaper towels...

daisygirl17 — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 20:14:04 GMT

I thought I'd put this little warning out there...since I know a lot of us are using cloths and what not instead of paper towels, now. I just read about a fire that occurred in my area when a family used some cloth to wipe up a large amount of cooking oil. They then washed and dried the towels and they were sitting in a laundry basket. The washing didn't remove all of the cooking oil and they spontaneously combusted...

article HERE

it's great that we aren't using paper towels much...but be careful! i never thought cooking oil could do this...but i guess it makes sense. it's just crazy that it happened after they washed and dried the towels! it must have been a lot of oil, but still. makes me nervous about the OCM. but, i'm assuming it was a ton of oil.

What's your take on Aveda?

pivey — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:11:08 GMT

Just wondering...

Anyone converted a toilet to dual-flush?

uncannycanuck — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 17:26:35 GMT

Not replaced, converted.

With something like this. Kits seem to run about $30 - when we buy a house, I think I'd like to convert all the toilets. If you've done it, which kit did you use? Was it easy?

Speaking of fish...

jackieo1309 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:49:40 GMT

Do you eat it regularly? Why or why not? What are your thoughts on farmed vs. wild fish? Are there specific fish you avoid? I don't think this has been discussed recently so I'm just curious what everyone's opinions are :)

Homemade body wash

SadiePie1085 — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:16:06 GMT

I just finished up a bottle of body wash, and I'd like to re-fill it with homemade ingredients. I do have Dr. Bronners, so I was thinking to use that. Would I just put a little of the Dr. Bronners in the bottle and then fill the rest with water? Is it really drying to skin? Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!

What is most comparable to Burt's Bees?

ArcticFox — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 16:04:20 GMT

Since there has been a lot of discussion about Burt's Bees lately.. including people being unhappy about the buyout by Clorox...

What brand is "most comparable" to Burt's Bees?

By that, I mean, simple & safe ingredients, and decent price.

I'm thinking too the availability of BB is nice - we don't have good health food stores around here, so it is nice when a product line isn't too tough to find.

Off the top of my head, it seems like Badger Balm is close in price/ingredients/availability, but the product line isn't as large.

vitamins and supplements...and my experience with a ND

daisygirl17 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 20:29:41 GMT

okay so i went to a naturopathic doctor for the first time ever on wednesday....and i LOVED her. i spent one and a half hours there and she even let me listen to my heart murmur which NO doctor has ever done..it was fun :)

anyway...i went to her with a few concerns...acne, heavy periods, and allergies/asthma.

so we discussed a lot and i'm going back on the 30th to have blood drawn for a food sensitivity test, hormone test (for heavy periods) and thyroid level test..(she thought my thyroid felt enlarged)...anyway and she came back with the following treatment plan..

a 2 week cleanse (while eating) and then 3 weeks on probiotics. then, she also has me doing a magnesium mouth spray, my regular schiff vegetarian multivitamins and then 5000 iu/day of vitamin D.

my question is...how do you all feel about supplements and vitamins? i'm new to this whole naturopathic treatment stuff and am very open to the idea...but i started to google 5000 iu/day and got some scary pages saying that it's way too much....there's also vitamin D in my daily supplement (400iu) and some in the fish oil i'm taking...am i overdosing myself? i'm going to ask the doc about it when i go back for the testing, but i was curious to what you guys think? i know some of you go to NDs as well...so i'd love to hear your thoughts!

if you don't eat meat...

daisygirl17 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:59:54 GMT

how do you get your protein?

i'm curious because of the pp about soy...and i see that a lot of you avoid soy. so, i'm curious if there are any veggies out there who don't eat much soy either...and if so how you get your protein? DH and i are new to being pescatarian and eat quite a bit of soy...but I'm learning that that might not be the best...so I'm curious :)

TIA!

Seattle ladies: Smith Brother's Farm

s+m — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 21:30:45 GMT

I'm just curious if anyone knows anything about Smith Brother's milk or their other products. I grew up in Seattle and was raised on the stuff, I tried checking around on their website but they really don't say anything other than hormone free.

The World According to Monsanto

CharlottesWeb — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 01:01:30 GMT

When is the release date for this book? I can't seem to find it anywhere online. The best I can do is pre-order it on Amazon, but there is no mention of a date.

Anyone?

fish pocket guide...

daisygirl17 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:50:20 GMT

i don't know if this has been shared here, but my sister just sent me these links...printable pocket guides on what fish to eat and what to avoid...

Midwest guide:

http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/content/media/MBA_SeafoodWatch_MidwestGuide.pdf

West coast guide:

http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/cr_seafoodwatch/content/media/MBA_SeafoodWatch_WestCoastGuide.pdf

Annnnnd I think this has been shared here, but if someone doesn't have it, a pocket guide about what foods are best to buy organic and what ones are not-so-important:

http://www.foodnews.org/EWG-shoppers-guide-download-final.pdf

cloth diaper blog contest

PDX — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 00:10:57 GMT

add a comment to be entered :)

http://www.clothdiaperblog.com/fysf-super-sized-giveaway-nov-20-dec-4-2009/#comment-18873

Wheat flour replacement in quick breads

DharmaChick — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:43:27 GMT

I usually bring my pumpkin cranberry bread to family during Thanksgiving and the holidays, because it's always requested. Recently, my SIL found out that she cannot have wheat gluten. I would love to make a loaf that is safe for her to enjoy, but I'm not sure what type of flour would work well in this kind of bread. While I know that there are plenty available, I haven't worked with other non-wheat flours.

Have any of you successfully made a gluten-free version of this type of bread? What kind of flour did you use, and did it change the texture/density?

Thank you!!

Hold my hand through GMOs?

ksdk — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:03:24 GMT

When I read “GMO” I think of govt subsidized crops like corn and soy. But when I googled it for more info, I get “genetically modified organism.” Now, we had a farmer at the house last month that was talking about “welfare for farmers” and I thought it was in reference to GMOs. My lines are blurred somewhere. Can you give me a quick shove in the right direction so I can can get through my google results more efficiently?

: )

U.S. residents fight for the right to hang laundry

daisygirl17 — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 19:30:25 GMT

did ya'll see this?

link

I know it has been discussed- Burt's Bees: Y don't some of you like them?

River Pestie — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:07:26 GMT

I went back a few pages and couldn't find anything on it.

I bought Burt's Bees lip balm and suncreen a few weeks ago, but I came on here and found out that some of you don't like them and some of you do.

SuperGreen! Ocracoke!

ksdk — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:33:20 GMT

How great is that place? Like heaven on earth! I’ve stayed on the obx for years, and made the trip down to Ocracoke this past summer with the kids and another family. I believe we stayed at “Sisters” on the back of the island. We brought our bikes and cruised all over the place. And of course, low tide is the best. Such warm water and nice tide pools to lay around in. We had such a great time. We are looking to book a slightly bigger house with the same family this summer. Oh and we took a boat to Portsmouth, we skipped town and headed straight for the beach. Pristine beach with huge intact shells. A real treat! Do you go regularly?

Green Gift Guide

DharmaChick — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 20:51:02 GMT

Sorry if I missed someone already posting this, but as the holiday shopping starts, you may want to check out this page at TreeHugger.com

If you don't already know, their site and e-mail subscription are worth checking out in general, but in particular I like to check out their gift guide each year.

Recommend your produce bags...

TCsbride — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 03:28:20 GMT

I remember hearing that certain materials are better for produce bags than others, so I'm totally overwhelmed by which ones to buy (preferably on Etsy). Can you recommend some?

Donate to EWG - cosmetics database & sunscreen

SuperGreen — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:21:58 GMT

The Environmental Working Group (EWG), the non-profit company that researches and runs the Skin Deep cosmetics database and the sunscreen database, is looking for help to continue their research. Below is the info they sent me. I donated already, I think this is a very worthy cause as they research and maintain environmental information I use all.the.time. Plus, right now a generous donor will match whatever you give.

With all the flu worries these days, hand sanitizers are everywhere. They're at the gym, my kid's play group, even the grocery store. Ever wonder what's in them?

My guess is that you probably looked up sanitizers in our online Skin Deep database. Maybe you've also looked up your moisturizer, or your phone in the Cell Phone Radiation report. If you're like the thousands of EWG supporters I've met in person or online this year, you want to be sure the products you use are safe and effective, and you turn to EWG to get the information you need.

If EWG has ever helped you make a wiser, safer choice for you and your family, then I'm asking for your help today.

We are up against a 2009 fundraising goal that will determine whether or not we have the funding for our 2010 research. We want to raise $50,000 of that goal before Thanksgiving and need your help. If you donate $5 today, not only will a generous donor match your donation, but you'll also receive a free "Dirty Dozen" magnet telling you about produce and pesticides.

Click here to make a tax-deductible donation of $5 or more before Thanksgiving and get a free "Dirty Dozen" magnet. Remember, if you donate today, a generous donor will match your gift, doubling your impact!

I know that protecting your family from harmful toxins is something you take very seriously -- otherwise you wouldn't be reading this now. I'm guessing that over the past year, you probably chose a bath product based on its ingredients, bought a headset to avoid being exposed to radiation, or went to the organic produce aisle to avoid pesticides.

We take our job just as seriously. We know that you're counting on us to give you the information you need to make smart choices. We're deeply committed to doing this research, to staying on top of emerging trends and up-to-the-second innovations. But keeping up with this research means making sure we have the funding to do it. And that's where you come in.

Please help us make critical decisions about our work in the coming year by making a tax-deductible donation today. If we can reach our goal, we can be sure that we'll have enough funding in 2010 to perform the crucial research you need to protect your family. And remember, if you donate by midnight on 11/25, you will not only receive a free "Dirty Dozen" magnet, but a generous donor will match your gift.

For me, Thanksgiving is about family and being grateful for our good health and well-being. The reason I got into this line of work is that I wanted to do all I could to protect my family. If you feel like I do, then please help EWG today.

Sincerely,

Ken Cook
President, Environmental Working Group

Vegan Thanksgiving options

Dr.Loretta — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:04:42 GMT

My SIL is vegan and is doing a series of posts on her blog with vegan Thanksgiving ideas. Thought you guys might want to check out a central locale for recipe ideas.

www.yourveganmom.com

Too much soy?

gdeutch — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:21:52 GMT

Has anyone heard that too much soy can cause health problems? Just trying to get as much info as possible.

Is Ivory bar soap EF?

River Pestie — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 17:14:44 GMT

Just curious.

Thanks.

We had an Inconvenient Truth presentation

megan0071234 — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:14:15 GMT

In my Social Problems class last night. It was really interesting, informative, and terrifying all at once. The clips they had of republicans in the House saying that humans aren't causing global warming & that it's all just a ploy to raise taxes was really scary. The had a clip of the Minority House Leader basically say that global warming is all a hoax & that the US should not rush into "handcuffing" themselves into any emissions agreements, since it would "reduce the quality of American lives"... That makes me sick.

It just pains me to see how incredibly far we are from becoming a more green civilization. But, it also left me with a renewed feeling of action. My DH came with me to hear the speaker, and he is much more committed than before to green living, so I suppose that is good!